Folks really didn’t do all that much traveling in 2020 thanks to the coronavirus, which is making many of them even more excited at the possibility of taking a trip next year. But travel certainly won’t be back to normal for a while, and now Expedia has revealed how that will affect next year’s travel with their 2021 travel trends report.
According to the site:
- Flexibility will be one of the most important things for travelers next year, with the site noting folks are 10% more likely to book travel with refundable rates. On a positive note, refundable bookings were actually 20% cheaper in 2020 than 2019.
- Travelers will continue to focus on safety, taking precautions when it comes to where and with whom they travel. And properties are noticing, with close to 300,000 adding health and cleanliness information to their details.
- Last minute bookings will still be popular, with the average traveler booking flights about 29 days out. The only thing prompting some folks to book earlier is airlines waiving change fees.
- While hotels are still the most popular type of accommodations, more and more folks are looking for alternative accommodations like cabins, cottages, and even castles.
It shouldn’t be too surprising that the top trending destinations for 2020 were mostly domestic, including
- Lake Havasu, Arizona
- New Bern, North Carolina
- The Hamptons, New York
- Ocean City, Maryland
- Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
But folks are already looking to explore outside the U.S. in 2021, with island destinations pretty popular. In fact, of the Top 20, half are islands and another third are beach resorts.
Top Ten Trending Destinations For 2021
- Cancun, Mexico
- Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen and Tulum, Mexico
- Las Vegas
- Orlando
- Punta Cana, Mexico
- Oahu
- Maui
- Miami
- Los Cabos, Mexico
- French Polynesia
Source:Business Insider